North Beaches

Beautification of North Beaches gateway under way

Jim & Elaine Dilbeck824-1761

Published Tuesday, April 17, 2001

Did you notice anything different as you come across the Usina Bridge this week? You should. The beautification of the gateway to the North Beaches is in another phase. Today as I am writing this article, the ground is being prepared, and the plantings are going in to beautify the entrance into our community. Thanks to the tireless efforts of the waterfronts committee of the North Shores Improvement Association, these improvements are happening. Look for further changes in the future.

Our sympathy is extended to two families who lost loved ones last week.

William ''Harold'' Coleman, Jr. and Thomas ''Tommy'' Tutten both died in water-related accidents. Tommy drowned April 8 when he went into the surf to retrieve a raft for some children playing on the beach and then began to struggle. He was pronounced dead on arrival at Flagler Hospital.

Tutten was a graphic designer in the advertising department at The Record. On a personal note, I went to school with Tommy at St. Augustine High School in our freshman year and remember him as a friendly, fun-loving classmate.

Harold was reported missing around noon April 8, after a wave capsized his 24-foot boat close to 40 miles off the coast of St. Augustine Saturday. Harold was with his family friend, Lanny Bradley of Jacksonville, who is also missing, and Donny Andrews, Harold's cousin.

Andrews was rescued by a passing boater after spending 13 hours in the water.

Harold has three children -- William Harold III, Elizabeth Jane and John Nicholas, and when they were younger, they lived at the end of Oak Avenue about a block from us. Our children would sometimes play together.

We extend our sympathy to his family.

The North Shores Improvement Association (NSIA) had two speakers at its April 9 meeting. The first was Vickie Renna, principal planner for St. Johns County planning division. She discussed the St. Johns Scenic and Historic A1A project.

Part of the benefit for the community for designating A1A as a Florida scenic highway, she said, is to produce a long-range plan for improvements and enhancements of the corridor. It benefits the residents of the area by allowing them to create their own vision for future improvements of the corridor in cooperation with inter-governmental agencies involved in the area.

The St. Johns Scenic and Historic A1A Citizens Advocacy Group (CAG) began actively meeting in September of 1999. It was formed by the St. Johns County Commission to apply for the designation and guide the planning process for the scenic highway corridor. The group is comprised of any interested resident and business owner of St. Johns County, town of Marineland, city of St. Augustine, Vilano Beach and Ponte Vedra. In addition, representatives from several state and local government agencies are involved.

The Florida Department of Transportation scenic highway coordinator, provided by FDOT, and the county's consultants, guide the process. The advocacy group meetings are open to everyone and opinions and suggestions are encouraged.

A questionnaire has been circulated to the residents for their input. Workshops will be conducted so that everyone can understand the process and can register their visions for the corridor.

For further information on this project, contact Renna at 823-2519.

Chris LeDew, traffic studies engineer with the District 2 FDOT was the second speaker. He serves Nassau, Duval, Putnam, Clay and St. Johns counties.

He discussed three technical issues: Parking, speed zones and no passing zones.

The three intersections in the area with the most number of traffic incidents, he said, are Third Street and A1A, Euclid and A1A and Boating Club Road and A1A. The area, LeDew said, is currently experiencing growth pains, and the continuation of large developments will bring turning lanes which should help in the safety and flow of traffic on A1A.

Several members voiced their concern about high speeds on A1A and one member suggested that the FDOT put a structure on the right-of-way where it gave the speed you were driving as you passed it.

As to a question about bike lanes, LeDew said that is number five on the priority list of the county from 1999.

Get your Vilano 5K walk and run application in to us. Phone us at 824-1761 or e-mail us at med34@aug.com to request your application now. Pre- registration is $12 and same day registration is $15 and this includes a T- shirt.